Although Joe Paterno might like to, he can't coach forever. And after 30 years of loyal service, Tom Bradley would seem to make an obvious heir apparent to the Penn State head coach.

"I don't worry about that," Bradley, the Penn State defensive coordinator said recently. "I like what I do. Everybody says, 'You have to be a head coach.' I've had such a great experience, great things have happened. The people that I've met, I wouldn't trade for the world."

Bradley's Penn State roots go back more than three decades. He went from special teams captain to graduate assistant in 1979 and has been in Happy Valley ever since.

Bradley grew up in Johnstown, a western Pennsylvania mining town, as the second oldest of seven kids. His father, Jim, played basketball for Pittsburgh.

The Penn State connection started with his older brother, Jim, who played defensive back for Paterno from 1973-74. Tom played defensive back from '77-78, and his younger brother Matt was a linebacker from '79-81.